Mind Gaming
Double-take at this viral Rubik's Cube solve between duelling twins
Watch how German speedcubing brothers Sebastian and Philipp Weyer put it all on the line in the semi-final at the Rubik's Cube World Cup and were separated by just 0.001s.
The snapshot
Picture this. You are on the verge of reaching the final of the Red Rubik's Cube World Cup in Moscow and having a shot at glory. The only thing that stands in your way? Your twin sibling. This was the predicament facing dexterous duo Sebastian and Philipp Weyer back in November 2019, with their semi-final tied at 1–1 in a best-of-three contest.
The race against the clock
With their hands poised above the rostrum, the brothers swept into action. It wasn't a vintage performance in terms of speed (8.461 seconds), however their Rubik's Cubes still rotated in a colourful blur before Philipp edged the titanic tussle by just 0.001s in a duel which has since become a viral video hit.
The reaction
"I was just completely stunned that it was actually just a mere millisecond, so I had to step off the podium to cope with what had happened," said Philipp.
Sebastian added: "It took me a while to process what I was seeing and, when I realised that it was only a 0.001-second difference, I was pretty upset."
The sibling rivalry
The brothers first started solving Rubik's Cubes after they each received one for a Christmas present in 2009. It wasn't only speedcubing though, they went head-to-head in judo, badminton, music and several different online games. "We've been insanely competitive with each other at almost every aspect of our lives," said Sebastian.
In terms of their approach to this booming game of skill, Philipp revealed: "I guess we have the same mindset in that we want to become better and better at cubing, especially to beat each other, but I'd say that our techniques are quite noticeably different."
